Nutcracker



Nov. 10, 1931. J. 1:. SMITH 1,831,723

' NUTCRACKER Filed Dec. 12. 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 James 5 Skiff/9 @iwm M g I. ATTORNEY Nov. 10, 1931. ESMITH 1,831,723

NUTCRAGKER Filed Dec. 12. 1930 2 Sheets-Shet 2 INVENTOR Patented Nov. 10, 1 931 l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

' e SMITH m n mam a Application filed. December 12, 1930. Serial No. 501,932.

This invention relates to new and useful bolted or otherwise securedtothe table or improvements in nut crackers and has .for like support 2 and has mounted thereon a the primary object, the provision of a decombined support and stop 3cons1st1ng of an vice of the above stated character which will elongated member secured to the upperface 5 place a maximum crushing action on a nut of the base 1 by bolts 4' and has one endbent 55 with a minimum expenditure of effort on to form an upstanding flange 5 terminating the part of the operator. in a horizontal flange 6 disposed over a por- Another objectof this invention is the protion of the member 3. The other end of the vision of movable jaws associated with a member 3 is bent and bifurcated to forma base and connected with-operating levers pair of relatively spaced attaching arms 7 0 whereby one jaw may be actuated by one receiving a pivot bolt 8 on which are jourhand of the operator and theother jaw a'cnalled the pivoted ends of upper and lower tuated byva foot of the operator leaving the jaws 9 and 10, respectively. The jaws9 and other hand of the operator free to place .1 0 include elongated portions 11 which have and remove nuts from the j aws. I one of their ends bent angularly and aper- A further object of this invention is the tured to receive the'pi'vot bolt 8 while their provision of a nut cracker of the above stated opposite ends are angularly'disposed vand of character which will be simple, durable and substantially semi-circular shape to provide eflicient and which may be manufactured and nut engaging portions 12 and which are consold at a comparatively lowcost. v caved or socketed as shown at 13 to receive With these and other objects in view as the ends of the nut 14 as shown in Figure 1 will become more apparent as the description of the drawings. h proceeds the invention consists in certain A wedge-shaped member 15 is slidably novel features of construction, combination mounted on the member 3 and engages under and arrangement of parts, as will be herethe lower jaw 10 and is limited in its forinafter more fully described and claimed" war-d movement by the stop defined by the For a complete understanding ofmy inflanges 5 and 6. A pivot pin 16 is carried vention reference is to be had tothe 'follo-wby the Wedge-shaped member 15 intermeing description and accompanying draw diate the ends of the latter and has pivotally ings, in which connected thereto arcuate-shaped .arms 17 Figure 1' is a side elevation illustrating a that extend downwardly 'on each side of the nut cracker constructed in accordance with base 1 and are pivotally connected as at 18 to my invention. an operating lever 19. a The lever 19 is con- Figure 2 is an end elevation illustrating structed from a single length of material bent the same. intermediateits ends to form a stirru 20 for Figure 3 is a perspective view illustrating the purpose of receiving the foot of tie operone of the jaws. ator, and the parallel portions of the lever are Figure 4 is a similar view illustrating the. apertured to receive a pivot bolt 21 on the other jaw. base 1 whereby the movement of the lever 19 Figure 5 is a perspective view illustrating in one direction will cause the wedge-shaped m a combined support and stop for one of the member 15' to raise or elevate the lower jaw jaw perating means. 10 toward the upper jaw 9. I a I F gure 6 1s a perspective view illustrating A substantially U-shaped bracket-22 has the lever support. its web portion '23 secured to the base 1 by Figure 7 is a perspective view illustrating one of the bolts 4 with the member 3 dis, a rod shaped element for actuating one of the posed between the arm portions 24 which also jaws and carried by the combined support have the upper and lower jaws9 and 10, reand stopshown in Figure 5. spectively, disposed therebetween; Theiree Referring in detail to the drawings, the ends of the arm portions 24 areslightly renumeral 1 indicates a base which may be duced in size and offset inwardly and curved laterally to form attaching ears 25 connected by a pivot bolt 26 overlying the upper jaw 9 and on which is journalled a hand lever 27. The lever 27 on the pivoted end thereof is formed with a cam 28 engaging the upper jaw 9. Braces 29 connect the pivot bolts 8 and 26 and have pivotally secured thereto a substantially U-shaped arm 30. The arm portions of the substantially U-shaped arm 30 are bent angularlv and have their free ends connected by a bolt 31which underlies the opposite direction with the nut interposed between the jaws as shown in Figure 1 will cause a downward movement of the upper jaw 9 or in a direction toward the lower jaw 10 by the cam 28 engaging the upper jaw, and a movement of the foot lever 19 in one direction will cause the wedge-shaped member 15 to elevate or move the lower jaw 10 toward the upper aw 9, thereby efficiently cracking or crushing the shell of the nut 14 and permitting a person to operate the device with one hand and one foot leaving the other foot to stand upon and the other hand to feed nuts to and from the jaws.

WVhile I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that minor changes in construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope as claimed.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is:

1. A nut cracker compri sing a base, a support on said base, jaws pivoted to said support and arranged one above the other and having oppositely disposed nut engaging faces. and hand operating means for one of said jaws, and a foot operating means for the other jaw.

2. A nut cracker comprising a base, a support on said base. upper and lower jaws having one of their ends pivoted'to said support and their opposite ends angularly disposed and socketed to provide nut engaging elements, a hand lever for operating one of the aws, and a foot lever-for operating the other 3. A nut cracker comprising a base, a support on the base, upper and lower jaws pivoted to the support and having nut engaging faces, a jaw operating means slidable on the support and engaging the lower jaw, a foot operating lever connected to the base and said jaw operating member to actuate the respective jaw, and a hand lever for actuating the other aw.

4. A nut cracker comprising a base, a support on the base, jaws pivoted to said support to receive a nut, a stop on the support, a wedge-shaped element slidable on the support and engaging one of the jaws, a foot actuated lever pivoted to the base, arms pivoted to the lever and to the Wedge-shaped element for actuating said last named jaw, and a hand actuated lever for operating the other jaw.

5. A nut cracker comprising a base, a sup port on the base, upper and lower jaws pivoted to said support to engage a nut, a

foot operating means for actuating the lower jaw, a second support on said base, and a hand operating lever pivoted to the second support and engaging the upper jaw for actuating the latter during the movement of said hand lever. w

6. A nut cracker comprising abase, upper and lower jaws pivotally mounted on said base, a foot operating means for the lower jaw, a bracket secured to the base, a hand lever pivoted to said bracket, a cam on the pivoted end of the hand lever to engage the upper jaw for moving said upper jaw toward the lower jaw during movement of the hand lever in one direction, and means associated with the upper jaw to be engaged by the hand lever when moving in one direction for elevating the upper jaw away from the lower 7. A nut cracker comprising a base, a pivot on said base, upper and lower jaws carried by said pivot, a foot operating means for the lower jaw, a bracket on the base, a hand lever pivoted to said bracket, a cam on said lever for engaging the upper jaw on movement of the hand lever in one direction, braces connecting the pivot to the bracket, an arm pivoted to said braces and engaging under the upper jaw and having a portion disposed in a plane above the upper jaw to be engaged by the hand lever when swung in the opposite direction for elevating the other aw. I

3 In'testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

JAMES E. SMITH. 

